Altered Horizons
by TadStrange24
Summary: Tails is living with Sonic in the mystic ruins when he finds a book of spells and his life begins to radically change. Dealing with his new found power, and dealing with unknown forces he must rise to the challenge. CH7 UP Hiatus OVER! Please read/review. Seriously it would be awesome of you.
1. A spark in the Dark

Ha I am back with a new story already. Muhahaha. This one is odd, it doesn't take place in any specific Sonic continuity, so I might throw in something here and something there

from Sonic X, SatAm, AoStH. Anyways I have decided to begin a new story and I hope it interests you and that you will please review. I dont own Sonic or Sega or any characters.

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He was panting, sweating and felt dead tired, an early morning jog with the heroic blue hedgehog always seemed to have this affect on him, granted he was running at about half the speed of sound, but still he always felt envious of the blue blurs seemingly limitless stamina. The young twin tailed and orange fox known as Tails had his hands on his knees and was attempting to recapture his breath when the blue blur, his hero and best friend was suddenly standing there before him, cocky grin on his face and a friendly bit of laughter in his voice. "Geez Tails, you're definitely getting faster, pretty soon I might have to cut down on the old chilidogs just to keep up." Tails chuckled and gave his self adopted brother a thumbs up finally having caught his breath and stood at full height, it was a dream of his to outrun his hero, a dream that he was confident he would one day achieve, given he could somehow steal his shoes first then get him to race. "You think I'll ever be able to break the sound barrier, cause that would be way past cool!" Sonic laughed at his younger brothers enthusiasm, he was an extremely fast runner, no whereas near Sonic speed of course, but then again he was positive that one of these day he would invent something that would let him outrun the hedgehog, it would be a proud day, but he still hoped it was a little ways off. The two brothers began their walk back to the mystic ruins where Tails home was located, they made jokes the entire way, usually involving Robotnik's enormous stomach, then suddenly Tails stopped walking about half way there and just stared off into the woods, Sonic stopped when he realized he was bereft of his little buddy and walked back to stand next to him. "What is it lil buddy?" Tails didn't answer he just stared into the woods for a few more seconds and then suddenly took off full force into them, Sonic quickly trailed him and started shouting, now worried for his friend. "Tails! What's gotten into you bro, snap out of it! Tails!"

Then he stopped, in a small clearing buried within the woods, where the sunlight shimmered through the thick canopy of trees he stooped down and picked something up, the Hedgehog was curious and ran around to his front and looked him directly in the eyes and Tails finally spoke. "That was way past weird, I just felt something telling me to come here and that it was important, sorry if I scared you Sonic but it was like I was on autopilot or something." Sonic put up his hands in a friendly manner and said don't sweat it, then he asked to see why he had dragged him out to the middle of the forest, he moved his hands and revealed a book. Sonic placed his head in his hands and started laughing. "You would have a sixth sense for books, geez it's like someone made you king of the nerds." He lightly punched Tails shoulder and Tails giggled back before walking out of the forest with Sonic in tow and book clutched to one side. They kicked up the dust of the road together as they marched in the direction of Tails home, Tails turned to Sonic mid stride and quickly turned away, Sonic noticed and quickly voiced his concern. "Something eatin ya little bro? You know you can tell me anything." Tails sighed as he asked Sonic a question he had asked himself countless times, a question that would on some nights keep him awake. "Sonic, would you be better off without me? I mean I usually just get captured and you have to save me, and all I really do is fly you places, I mean you could easily learn to fly yourself and then.." He was cut off as Sonic threw an arm around his brother's shoulder, and replied with a voice so serious it seemed strange to come from the hedgehog. "I would have been toast years ago if not for you little buddy, heck you're the best brother I could ever ask for and your inventions are so cool they probably make Eggman jealous, I mean think about it, if you were the bad guy and Eggman was my sidekick you probably would have conquered Mobius years ago" The fox brightened at the statement and then he looked at the Hedgehog that was his brother with the most amused look Sonic had ever seen on him when he spoke. "Careful Sonic, you don't want to give me any ideas do you, Emperor Tails does kind of have a nice ring to it don't you think."

He smirked and the hedgehog rolled his eyes, though thinking about it he was very happy the fox was on his side, they reached Tails house and he unlocked the front door and flicked a light switch which illuminated the room in a warm yellow glow. Sonic flopped down on the couch and then remembering something voiced his question just as the fox disappeared into the kitchen. "Oh, hey what was that book you found anyway?" Tails came out a second later and shrugged as he munched on a chocolate chip cookie, he usually bought them in bulk as cookies he owned tended to vanish rather quickly. He placed the book on his oaken coffee table and stared at its cover, bound in ocean blue leather, a large symbol dominated the front, a inverted equilateral triangle inside of a circle both emblazoned in gold with a number of minor runes running along the border. He turned the book to read its spine and read aloud. "Fundaments of Magic, by Zarek Vallmer" Sonic scoffed and laughed out loud, magic, it was a ridiculous idea, as ridiculous as, he thought a moment and when the only comparison that came to mind was his immense running speed he quickly shut his mouth, Chaos emeralds existed, so why should he question magic, still he was dubious of the thing. Tails had an excited look in his eye, he had felt an irresistible pull towards this book, could that pull have been magic calling out to him, he was unsure but was excited at the prospect of this book possibly containing answers about the Chaos emeralds, to say they bugged him would be an understatement, they confused the hell out of him and seemed to defy any law of physics he tried to apply to them.

He flipped to a random page and started reading. "All summoning circles should be of approximately 7 feet in diameter and lined with no fewer than 4 candles and no more than 13, draw the rune for the creature you desire to summon and focus your powers directly into the candles using them as tethers to allow your magical energies to fill the circle." He stopped a puzzled look on his face and Sonic recognized the look, it was the, I'm going to try this the second Sonic's not looking look, the hedgehog sighed and chuckled, "If you're going to start summoning ghosts and goblins, try not to burn the house down, you could really ruin all the chilidogs you keep in your freezer." Sonic grinned and Tails face palmed chuckling at his brother, he would look through the book later he decided, for now he was going to finish his repairs on the Tornado. He placed the book on top of his desk in his workshop and began gathering his tools and getting under his beloved biplane, tightening bolts, checking oil levels, he really loved doing it, it was relaxing for him and was something that very few other 9 year olds would be able to accomplish, then again most of what he did would be considered near impossible even by adult standards, and this thought made him proud. Several hours passed as he carefully checked his prized possession over, then made sure to clean it properly, when he was at last done he decided it was time for some light reading, and he had just the book in mind. Just holding it in his hands he could feel a small tingle run through his small frame, his fur seemed to almost stand on end, so he opened it up to the index page and began reading out sections aloud. "Identifying enchantments, nope, illusionary theory, maybe later, Magical aptitude test, that sounds perfect!" He flipped to the required page and began reading through the instructions, it stated that you should be completely relaxed and meditate for several minutes before attempting the test, Tails sighed, one of the worst habits he had picked up from his hero was his dislike of standing still, he always felt like he should be inventing or building something. So he sat cross legged on the cold floor of his workshop and wound his tails around his stomach in a comforting manner before shutting his eyes and imagining the most peaceful place he could think of, flying his plane at sunset, the air rushing past him ruffling his fur, Sonic standing on the wing that big goofy grin on. He remained there playing through the entire scene in his mind before he finally reopened his eyes and instantly jumped nearly to the ceiling; Sonic was looking right at him only a few inches away from his face.

"Sonic you almost gave me a heart attack! Don't do that, ok!" Sonic was waving his hands in front of him apologizing, it had been so odd seeing his brother utterly motionless that he had decided to go in for a closer look, he genuinely felt bad now about scaring his friend, Sonic offered Tails half the chilidog he had brought down with him, the fox's stomach rumbled and he licked his lips as he seized the delicious morsel and wolfed it down thereby accepting the apology. "So Tails, what were you doing?" "Meditating" "Oh, I see" Sonic nodded his head and prepared to leave when a thought came to his head, he turned to face Tails and the young fox recognized the look of evil in hedgehogs forest green eyes, he quickly spun his tails and attempted to lift off into the air, but before he could Sonic was already on top of and tickling the fox. "Sonic hahaa, pleasehaahaha, STOP!" The hedgehog pulled back and instantly regretted it as Tails seized full opportunity and began tickling his older brother in retribution, they both found themselves tickling the other and laughing with untamed ferocity, eventually they each stopped their assault and lay on the floor huffing and emitting the occasional chuckle, at last Sonic got up and as he was departing Tails heard him whisper over his shoulder. "Love you bro, don't ever wonder if your useful or not, cause you're the most important person in my life." Tails laid on the ground a little longer a giant grin plastered clear across his face as he finally stood up and went over to the book. In all honesty he didn't expect much from it, he expected a hoax, but it did seem rather to elaborate to be a hoax, so he read over and began the magical aptitude test. The goal was to create a small spark between his hands and breathing in and out, he carefully concentrated, he felt the energy course through him and with the smallest of tensing in his hands willed a spark to appear, and he gasped when a small blue and white spark jumped from one gloved hand to the other, he fell directly on his butt and stared at his hands in utter shock, he had done it. Unbeknownst to him in a dimension far off, a figure perked his head and smiled, he had felt it, the spark, it had been to long since anyone had demonstrated this spark, and he quickly stood up as he shouted out to his assistant. "Serra it seems we have a new student coming shortly" with that the figure began making preparations.


	2. Sparks, cereal, and skulls

Hello, It is good to see you reviewers over here, Jakeroo123, canikostar99, FeathersofMemory, HalfWright, Darkness-is-my-heart-1, and last but not least, imnotraven16.

Story moves here, and I hope you enjoy and review, please review, I really look forwards to reading your reviews and it gives a wonderfull feeling. Anywho review or not I do not

own Sonic Sega, or any characters. Please enjoy.

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He tried to sleep, tried to dream, but was kept awake by the thought of the spark, he tried to come up with a reasonable explanation, static discharge caused by his fur was one such theory, but time and time again the thought that kept coming back like a boomerang was that it had truly been magic. Magic, it was impossible, the physics he knew were screaming bloody murder in his mind, it wasn't possible to just channel chemical energy into electrical through force of will, and yet he had done it all the same. Tails tossed about in his bed, twin tails hanging off the sides and frequently moved and twisted the blanket hoping a new position might bring sleep, of course it was futile and he eventually resigned himself to staring at the ceiling and wondering until the first rays of the morning pierced his window. As he had laid in the bed he had put his hands up and focused, and though it took time, a spark would eventually jump, he practiced until it only took seconds of concentrating, and soon found himself able to produce the spark at will, he tried to think of mechanical uses for his new found power, and chuckled as he toyed with the thought of making the tornado's back up power himself. Finally seeing the dawning sun, he pushed himself from the bed and went to the room directly across from his where his was and quickly showered before heading downstairs and looking for something to sate his appetite. Walking into the kitchen he opened a cupboard and poured himself a bowl of cereal and sat down and began eating, though he ate quite slowly as throughout the entire time he read from the book, flipping pages with one hand and using his spoon to shovel cereal in his mouth.

It all seemed so vast now, as if a veil had been pierced, realizing there was more to the world than he had ever imagined, just what was possible he wondered, and as he leafed through the book a blue figure crept up in front of him, and so enthralled by the book was Tails he didn't even realize until Sonic jumped and gave out a loud "Boo!" The cereal went flying and Tails frightened yelp woke those twenty minutes away, the fox was seething as he tried to pick bits of soggy cereal out from his fur as Sonic started rolling on the ground laughing, Tails smirked wickedly and placed his hands on Sonic's chest, the hedgehog looked at the hands with confusion for a moment before he started talking. "Yo Tails what exactly do you think your..AHHGh" He jumped backwards muscles twitching from the shock as he tripped moving backwards and got his spines stuck in the wall behind him. The struggle was too much and now it was the fox's turn to laugh and he did so as Sonic attempted to futilely pull himself out of the wall, eventually when his laughter died down Tails reached out a hand, which Sonic carefully inspected before grabbing it and with Tails help was pulled out of the wall, chunks of plaster coating his spines and shoulders which he quickly started dusting off. "Ok lil bro, ya got me, so what was that anyway, I didn't see a joy buzzer? Some new invention you planning on beating egg belly with?" Tails laughed at the comment as he proceeded to create the small spark jump from his hands again as a demonstration for the confused hedgehog, his confusion only increased as afterwards he grabbed Tails hand and began inspecting the glove as closely as he could, poking at every part of it. At last he gave up and asked. "I don't see any machines Tails, so how'd you do it?" Tails put a large grin on as he responded quite simply, Magic, the look on the hedgehogs face was one of disbelief and skepticism. "You trying to tell me that book you found taught you, magic, magic as in wizards, fireballs and all that kooky stuff. I'll believe that the same day I believe Eggman's secretly the good guy."

Tails sighed because of his brothers lack of faith and then proceeded to remove his gloves, it was a rare occasion as he never took them off, though Sonic would sleep without his gloves Tails had long ago decided it was just easier to wear them all the time, and so when he removed his gloves he heard Sonic gasp, and when he looked down he instantly recognized why. His hands last time he had checked had been the vibrant hands of a nine year old, the hands had the same color or orange fur as he did, but what he saw weren't the hands of a nine year olds, the fur was grey, and aged and just around the edges where it had thinned out wrinkle lines could be seen on the skin, not the hands of a child as he had expected, but the hands of an older man greeted him. "WHa…What's going on, why…Sonic I'm …, what happened!" The hedgehog was quick to put an arm around his little brother who had rapidly growing tears forming in his eyes, it was so unexpected, he held his hands out and looked at them in astonishment, realization dawned and he quickly ran out of his brothers comfort as he ran and retrieved his book, he had scanned over the three pages of index, but as held the book now a horrible realization hit him, if he had been seriously looking at the index instead of flipping randomly he would have noticed it, but now he did, two pages of the index were stuck together. With the pages separated he read the new entries, and the names were of a horrifying nature to the young fox. "The dangers of Magic, Hazards of spell casting, Mana burns a

nd other assorted magical ailments, illnesses commonly associated" He read these grim entries aloud before flipping to the page marked The Dangers of Magic, by then Sonic had joined him and was concerned to see his friend pouring over the book a frightened look in his eye as he read from the page, tears threatening to spill. "The dangers of Magic are threefold, one, any person with a talent for Magic is often of an obsessive nature by default, this can likely lead to few friends, a sense of isolation and in extreme cases development of paranoia and other metal difficulties. Two, any person who begins learning magic will find it extremely addictive and in only very rare cases are they able to stop entirely. Three, the use of magic relies on an inner life force and by using and manipulating it, the average life spans of wizards who are unaided is drastically reduced, usually between 26-34 years of age. The usual progression of what is commonly referred to as "Wizards waste" is an aging of the hands where most magical energy is focused, followed by a rapid decline in sense of sight and smell, followed by muscle fatigue, bone brittleness and finally hemorrhaging of the brain…" Tails stopped, tears ran down his cheeks and he shook as he grasped the book tightly against his chest and Sonic through his arms around him and in a shaky voice started. "Little bud, maybe it's not that, I mean it could be something else, anything else, and if it is…I know how strong you are so I bet you could stop and be just fine, right bud." Sonic tried to sound strong for his best friend, but inside he was horrified, outliving his little brother, watching him waste away and so addicted to casting spells he couldn't stop, it was a horrifying thought, Tails nestled into Sonic's chest tears soaking into his peach stomach as he tried to soothe him. At last Tails tears became little streams and Sonic rubbed his back, Tails choked out an obvious catch in his voice. "Sonic I'm… I don't want to die, I want to stop, but…what if I can't…I…I'm sorry Sonic, I'm so sorry for picking up that dumb book." Sonic continued to rub his back as the last of the fox's tears slid from his eyes, then a cough was heard, Tails looked at Sonic and Sonic did the same, it hadn't been either of them making the sound.

Then a voice rose, a little awkward though filled with authority and purpose as he spoke. "I am sorry to intrude, but I feel it is my duty to inform you of some very good news, young Tails? As I believe you referred to him has already demonstrated a magical aptitude, and though it is true he will waste if he remains here there is a way for him to live a very long and happy life, and he will be allowed to return here after a period of five years minimum if that is his wish." The duo spun around to face the voices source, with Tails wiping his eyes dry with his forearm as he turned, and there before them stood a human, though very unlike Robotnik in a great many ways as they observed, he was thin, and held light blond hair and dark grey eyes, he wore a cloak with a number of satchels and holsters for the myriad of arcane oddities no doubt buried within. He had on a smile, or rather a very sheepish grin which Tails for some reason felt the need to copy as he scratched the back of his head, Sonic however was very put out by his presence, in fact as he began talking his voice had an edge generally reserved for Robotnik. "Now just wait a minute, you come here the second my little buddy gets sick, promising a way to help him, if I let you drag him off to who knows where! Nuhuu not happening, you could be one of Robotnik's bots and this all some sick trap to capture by buddy Tails here and I'm not falling for it." The man put his hands in front of him and started shaking his head a nervous look to him as he quickly blurted out his explanation. "No, no you have me all wrong; I'm from the Aetherium College of magical study, were dedicated to helping those in young Tails predicament, we train them how to safely study magic without any of the adverse side effects, you'll be able to visit, and send mail to him, it's just that the existence of the College is a relatively well kept secret and we would like to begin as soon as possible so he doesn't deteriorate any more, though it would take a long time for his health to be in serious jeopardy we like to keep our students in the best possible health." With his rough explanation blurted out Sonic moved to make a retort when Tails hand reached out and grabbed Sonic's arm, the hedgehog turned to look at his brother and he saw it fill his eyes, hope, he already knew what was going to happen, so Sonic bent down and gave his brother a hug which they shared, as the stranger looked away a sudden overwhelming interest in the ceiling. When they last parted from each other's embrace the man spoke up again.

"Please pack anything you wish to bring, as you won't be making a return for five years at the minimum, also, Sonic, I believe, you will be allowed to write letters all you want and by simply placing them in the box which I will provide you they will make it to Tails, but as for visiting, it can only be once every year, any more than that and certain risks apply, I hope you understand and know we will not let any harm come to him, I'll leave you two alone for awhile, Tails I will be waiting in the front yard, whenever you are ready. With that the man walked out the front door and Sonic followed Tails into his room where he was slowly picking up objects, weighing them in both weight and emotional value before placing them either to the side, or in the backpack he had pulled from his closet. Sonic rested and arm on his brothers shoulder, still in shock as to what was happening, when Tails started to speak, his voice catching and a small tear running down his cheek. "I'm really going to miss you bro…I'll be alright so you don't need to worry about me just…give Eggman a good thrashing for me please. Don't worry it won't be for that long, and well write each other every day right!" Sonic nodded his head as Tails grabbed the last item to be placed in his back pack, a framed picture of him and Sonic standing on the cliff in his backyard smiling with the bright sunrise directly behind him, as Tails walked to the door, Sonic made a quick pit stop in the kitchen and returned in a blink of an eye, he handed Tails a Tupperware container filled with chilidogs as he voiced his goodbye. "Never know when you can get another one of these so I want you to have them. I'm really going to miss ya little buddy, but I'll write you every day, just please be careful, and tell me if you're not having a good time at any point and I'll come running. You know I love you bro, and I'll always be there if you need me, even if I have to Chaos control myself to wherever you're going, I'll be there." The two walked out arms slung across the shoulders of one another as they approached the waiting man. "Ready to go, Good, I forgot to properly introduce myself, my name is Sol, it is a pleasure to meet you Tails, and has been a pleasure, Sonic, but we have a long journey, both spiritually and figuratively, so let us not waste more time." Tails watched his brother wave goodbye, and waved back as he was engulfed in a brilliant violet light, and the world seemed to speed around him at a pace Sonic couldn't even dream of, then like a flash of lightning they stopped, and Tails instantly gripped his gut for fear of vomiting when he looked up and saw it, the grounds were truly a marvel, and he knew this would be his home for the time being, and was excited by the prospect. On Mobius Sonic sat on the couch and looked to the spot Tails would so often sit and gave out a sigh, he snapped his fingers and quickly ran to the nearest desk and started scribbling down his first letter to Tails, if his little brother of 9 was already in a college, the hedgehog would look like a fool if he couldn't write a good letter, and he was determined not to let that happen.


	3. The Joy of Roomates

It is up, and it has begun, dum dum duhhhh. No actually it's still pretty slow right now, introductory, but don't worry, It is getting more exciting and this fills in some characters, yay

characters, I don't own Sonic the hedgehog all rights and characters belong to Sega. Please Read review and enjoy, also thank you to some of the new reviewers. Tamara the

Hybridian, and a shout out to the good old reviewers. HalfWright, FeathersofMemory, canikostar99, and jakeroo123 all you people are awesome, enoguh blabbing lets begin.

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Tails looked from building to building in utter amazement, the white stone, intricate glass structures and tops were truly a sight to behold, and greater than all these things stood a large central building, its walls adorned with gold and silver carvings depicting the greatest mages throughout history, some were human, others looked similar to a feline Mobian, and others still looked all in a number of races Tails had never before seen. Sol chuckled to his side as he pointed to the first carving on the far right. "That is Varla, founder of the college of Aetherium, take note of his staff, widely known as Gibberevain, the one next to him is Amata, she was the one who actually sealed the college in the pocket dimension you find yourself in now, after her are Sib and Gavorn, a brother and sister who were the first to properly alter the flow of time and in effect created the time stones…" Tails stopped and looked at him strangely, and then proceeded to speak. "Wait, Sonic used the time stones once, he told me, and how did they make them?" The fox's curiosity brought a warm grin to Sol's face, yes; he'll fit right in around here, were his thoughts before replying. "Well, when they altered the flow of time, there was an immense buildup of, how to say it, Chronological energy, and in order to keep the energy from overwhelming them they poured it into nearby rock and scattered the rock across several dimensions, the fact that the stones ended up in yours was pure chance." Tails nodded his head in understanding as Sol continued to guide him through the history of the college, and finally leaving the magnificent structure behind, Tails followed occasionally casting a backwards glance as they walked.

Tails was still looking back and bumped into Sol who had stopped moving, he turned around quickly a worried look in his eye but was relieved to find Tails there, Tails grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head as he apologized. Sol responded, worry now erased from his face as he pointed to the building that now stood in front of him and cleared his throat as he started to speak. "This is the hall of Initiates, as you may have guessed from the name it is where you will be staying for the remainder of your time here, you're going to have to share a room with one of our other initiates, a young elf if I'm not mistaken, and her name was…Alysia, yes that was it. You have no commitments as today is your first day, so please feel free to wander about the college grounds and if you have any questions simply ask any member of the staff, we can be identified by the large eye in the sun patch located on our cloaks." He pointed to the exact patch for emphasis as he continued. "Also, we have left several items in your room which you may wish to make use of, a note has been left next to any item you may find unusual which should adequately explain its purpose, and we also left a schedule and a watch in the top drawer of your desk. If you have no further questions please feel free to explore, but a word of caution, the large tower on the eastern grounds is to be avoided, it is no place for initiates and the magical energy there could destroy any who are unprepared, so I think it is best if you simply avoid it altogether, with that I wish you a good day Tails and will likely be seeing you early in the morning." As he turned to leave Tails quickly grabbed his sleeve, and Sol found himself being spun around, the blue eyes of the Fox were glistening with questions and Sol again found himself smiling, as he waited for the young fox to begin his questions. "What about what I read, you know Wizards Waste, how are you going to keep me from… well you know?" Sol simply pointed to the air as he said aloud. "It's this dimension which prevents it, the laws are altered here, you need never worry while you are here about Wizard's Waste, and once your done your five years, we will provide you with an amulet if you still wish to return to your home dimension which will keep the effects of Wizards Waste from ever occurring."

Tails instantly brightened at this, he wouldn't need to worry and once he got back to Sonic he would be fine, though five years still sounded like far too long, so waving goodbye to Sol he entered into the hall of Initiates and began searching for his room. A large transparent and soft blue glowing arrow pointed him in the direction he was supposed to go, and after several seconds spent looking up at it he eventually followed its directions which led him to a door, it was of simple construction, some dark brown wood, and the knob looked brass, though he was unsure, and when he turned the handle his jaw dropped at the magnificence of the room. A large ornate window let the sun in from the glorious turquoise sky, a fireplace warm and inviting with intricate carvings sat to one side a bookcase filled with books of all shapes and sized across from it, a single bathroom did concern him as he remembered he would be sharing this room with a girl, and then he saw the bed, his bed, it looked so warm that he instantly leapt onto it, and let himself bounce several times before lying comfortably on his stomach atop the bed. He looked and saw his oaken desk and instantly went to inspect it, and just as Sol had said four items were on top of it each with a note directly beside it. The first was a strange jeweled box, and he read the note aloud to himself. "This box is used as a teleporter for mail, between you and the person judged closest to you. This person's name is Sonic the Hedgehog, if it is incorrect please inform a staff member and we will get the problem rectified as soon as possible" Tails smiled just saying his brother's name, he lifted the lid of the box and a big grin broke out across his face as he pulled the letter out and plopped himself atop the bed and started reading, imagining Sonic's voice as he read the words. "Hey bro, hope your enjoying day one, I know pretty lame of the great Sonic to write day one but hey, you're my little bro and I definitely want to keep an eye out for ya. Remember to not blow yourself up with a big fireball, and send a letter if you're feeling uneasy and need my help, I'll get there warp seven. I'm defiantly proud of you and can't wait to come and see you, a year is way too long for me but I'm hoping you'll impress me with some big cool magic display, any who I hope to hear from you soon. Love your big bro."

Tails chuckled as he put the letter down and went over to inspect the other items on his desk, he grabbed the pair of boots and read the note which stated that large shocks often occurred from spell casting and it was best to wear the insulated boats, shrugging he slipped off his familiar red and white high tops and placed them next to his bed before slipping the boots on, luckily they had been custom made and fit extremely well. Walking over he inspected the other two items, a map of the college grounds and a large over the shoulder bag and belt to hold books and other magical trinkets, he tightened the belt and slung the bag over his shoulder before looking into the mirror, he smirked, he really was starting to look like a college student he thought with a devious smile on his face, and not only that it was a magic college, and in Tails opinion it seemed like the best kind. Then he heard the front door open and footsteps inside the dorm, he heard a woman's voice, likely early twenties, but soft and with a sing song quality. "I wonder when he'll be here, man I can't wait to meet my roommate, I wonder what he'll look like, It would be the best if he's an elf to, that would be…" She stopped and her sentence trailed off as she stared directly at Tails and Tails nervously looked at her before waving and saying in a rather meek voice. "Hi" She was very beautiful, even the nine year old fox realized that, she had skin as pale as a snowdrift and verdant green eyes, and her hair was dark and long, her ears pointed out of her hair at the sides and she cautiously walked nearer to Tails she herself said in a rather meek voice "Hi" Tails grinned sheepishly and once again found himself rubbing the back of his head with one hand and offering the other to her. "My names Tails, uhhhm it's very nice to meet you and I hope we can become good friends" The girl grasped his hand and shook as she replied in kind. "My names Alysia and, I have never seen anything like you, NO OFFENSE! I'm sorry if I offended you, I really would like it if we could be friends." She was now the one grinning sheepishly as they separated hands and stood looking each other over, Tails felt short, in fact he had gone on his toes just to successfully shake hands, and Alysia was confused, she had read about all magical races at the Colleges library and at no point had she heard any mention of two tailed fox's and in fact the only other fox's she had known had been in her home dimension, and thinking about it, it was probably best not to mention what had become of them, Taxidermy had been quite popular in her culture.

Tails unslung the backpack he had carried with him and began putting the things he had brought with him around the room, until at last he pulled out what he had been looking for and opened the Tupperware container, and produced two chilidogs, he held one out to Alysia. She looked curiously at it, she was unsure exactly what it was but one whiff of it gave her the obvious impression of food, Tails was trying not to laugh at her reaction and began biting at the end of his, and she quickly mimicked, her eyes went wide with delight and she quickly found herself wolfing the thing down. "Tails had already finished and gave a smile and asked her if she liked it, her response was an emphatic nodding of the head. After she had swallowed she said in a much less awkward and nervous voice. "Thank you, that was very good, what do you call those things?" Tails laughed again as he replied chilidogs in a merry voice. Alysia looked around at some of the items the fox had placed, a journal, a book on something called airplanes, and finally her eyes rested on the Picture of him and Sonic. "Who's that? It looks like you two are really good friends." Tails chest puffed with pride as he responded. "That's Sonic the Hedgehog, fastest thing on Mobius, and also my big brother!" Alysia eyes were very confused, she saw no physical similarities between the two and was wondering about this when a sudden realization and question came to her mind. "Wait, Tails, how old are you?" Tails held up nine fingers and smiled, she felt a drop of sweat run down her face, to be at the college at age nine, it could only occur if the arch mage took personal interest, usually a display of power, thinking back to hers she found that book and it took almost three years for her to be able to produce the spark that she had since learned signaled the college, for him to produce it at this age was an incredible thought. The two sat down and began a lengthy conversation, well more questions about the other's world and life broken up by the occasional funny story, unknown to them the arch mage at this moment was speaking with Sol in his quarters. "Sol, do you truly believe him to be the one we've been looking for, I mean look how young he is, he couldn't possibly be the proper one, could he?" Sol replied utter confidence in his statement. "He is the one we've been looking for, you can see it in his eyes, he'll grow here and when the time comes, I'm certain he'll be ready." The Arch mage spoke, a serious tone on his face and in his voice. "I just hope you're correct, it seems wrong to put such a burden on one so young, but if he isn't the one and he can't do it, then our last hope truly is gone, I hope your right, I really do." With that he turned away and began counting days until what he knew to be inevitable, it seemed so soon, but five years was a long time, and maybe given five years he could become their savior, it was the only hope the aged wizard had left, for himself and any one in any of the universes that drew breath, the day was fast approaching when he would be forced to pay for that which his predecessors had done so long ago.


	4. The Man who stares

A big thanks to everyone who reviewed the previous chapter, I hope you enjoy this chapter and hope you continue to review, so lets begin. I dont own sonic or sega all

characters belong to them.

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Tails lay atop his bed, the occasional peaceful snore emanating from him, as he dreamed of bright days spent with Sonic on Mobius, his roommate watched him sleep and pondered how he could sleep so peacefully, she wondered just what he was dreaming of, and most of all, she wondered just how powerful he would become, he was, by all accounts she had read, the youngest person to ever attend the College of Aetherium. She mentally berated herself for her thoughts previous to meeting him, when she had heard she was to get a male roommate she was to say very confused, though excited as her dating life had been extremely non-existent for quite some time, she now fully understood why she had been placed with him, he was a child, the idea of dating was a complete impossibility so it had been safe to place the two together. He would likely be far more calmed with a female roommate then a male as magic being a very competitive game often leads to most male roommates attempting to either burn the other to a crisp, or out study them and leave them in humiliation, not to say it didn't occur among the female students as well, but in far less aggressive ways generally speaking, though theft of the others magical items was more common amongst the females of the college.

It was these things that Alysia wondered and her mind was wandering to such a degree that she didn't notice the bright blue eyes staring directly at her. She jumped slightly when Tails, high pitched yet groggy voice suddenly appeared. "Why are you watching me sleep?" her face had turned red and she quickly looked away in utter embarrassment, she was mentally screaming at herself and using several unflattering words, most of which were synonyms for stalker, Tails laughed as he threw the covers off and quickly stepped into his boots and fastened the belt around his waist, she was funny were his thoughts, though he pondered if he should set traps on his side of the room. Her voice spoke up, rather meekly and still filled with embarrassment over the incident, she mentally cursed herself for being an early riser as she spoke up. "Uhhhm, I'm really sorry. I just woke up earlier then you and you were still sleeping so, I just watched for….It won't happen again, and hey, your first class is soon and I'm supposed to show you where so come on." She was very satisfied with her attempts to divert conversation, Tails on the other hand now had horrible worries of her developing an Amy like obsession, he shuddered at the thought and began a mental material's list to build a trap capable of protecting his sleeping form as they each used the bathroom one after the other before heading out to the first class Tails had yet to attend.

The room was large, a semi-circle of benches around a golden podium with a very bizarre looking human standing behind it, and torches casting a glow around the room, the benches were already filled with a few other students as the door was opened and there stood Tails and Alysia who quickly became the focal point of everyone currently in the room as conversations quickly shrivelled up. The one standing behind the podium was the first to recover, he had expected a new student, but a four foot fox with two tails was, at the least, unexpected, he shook his bearded head to clear his thoughts as he focused his golden lizard like eyes on the two before speaking up in a rather loud voice which demanded authority. "We have a new student joining the college today and I would expect you all to treat him with the respect you give all other students, would you care to introduce yourself mister…" Tails smiled nervously as he quickly glanced around the room, only about eight other students, but when he focused on who was obviously the teacher he felt taken back, he had a worn face, not old but one that had a few small scars dotting it, his eyes were gold with slits that made him feel extremely nervous, but the thing that stood out most was what he wore, other staff he had seen walking about in cloaks, he had what looked to be a fur vest on. Fur, it made him extremely nervous, he had large muscles and looked better suited to holding a sword then a wand, and around his neck was necklace of teeth from various animals, all in all Tails impression of his first teacher was one of utter terror, he squeaked out his name. "Tails" The other students had faces that ranged from disgust to curious to, on one students face an overwhelming desire to cuddle, Tails shifted nervously on his feet as Alysia pushed him lightly and led him to a bench where he took his seat.

The teacher cleared his throat as he attempted to begin his lesson. "Well, as pertaining to you mister…Tails, my name is professor Fenrir, and this class is, if you were as ill-informed as I suspect, is Personalized Alteration and manipulation, here I'll give you a brief demo." He crouched down behind the podium and Tails leaned over in his bench to attempt to get a better view when a blur suddenly jumped out from behind the podium and stood on the bench directly in front of him, lizard like eyes only a few inches away, Tails was sweating and had decided to go with the, if you stand completely still it can't see you approach. The teacher did a quick backflip and landed directly behind the podium before starting again. "Personalized Alteration and Manipulation deals with channelling raw magical energy to specific points in the body and using it to greatly augment and enhance your own natural abilities, run faster, jump higher, hear better, that is what this class is about, and for the next two and a half hours, every one of you is all mine." He had a wicked grin on his face as he said that and Tails quickly discovered why, physical activity had never been the highest on Tails to do list, it was important and he did frequently go on runs with Sonic, but what he was doing at this instant was infinitely more unpleasant, he had a large stone placed on his back after only twenty minutes of instruction and was told to carry it for the remainder of class, it was a learn quick or die type of exam and the rock was easily twice Tails own body weight. He grunted and let out snarls as stones were placed on each of the other students backs, Tails wondered what this had to do with magic, and was wondering that at the point that the professor summoned up a small fireball in his hand and begun tossing it back and forth between his hands as he started speaking again.

"In the study and application of magic, we must deal with multiple stressors, and we frequently find ourselves forced to carry burdens we are simply not prepared for, so with this in mind, DODGE!" and with a frightening bello he started hurling the small fireballs in every conceivable direction, students were sweating rivers as they dodged and weaved around each other and the sudden assault of fireballs, Tails could hardly run, the rock was pushing down on him, so he simply stepped as quickly as he could to the farthest corner of the room where few fireballs were and dodged any that came his way, if it had been a smaller room it would have been an impossible task, but due to the rather large size few students were actually hit by a fireball, and those who were let out a small shriek as the rock crashed to the ground. Eventually only three people stood, Alysia, Tails and a rather serious looking person with brown hair on the opposite side of the room from Tails and Alysia who had slowly moved towards eachother as time had passed. "Hey Tails, huff huff how are you holding up huff huff?" Alysia was sweating and her face was beet red from strain, Tails was too tired to do anything other than flash a grin as he dodged another fireball, then suddenly the barrage stopped and a grinning Fenrir stood looking at the three still standing as he said in a voice which reeked with pride. "Ok students, rocks down, damn good job to you three, Tails you're going to make a fine addition to the college, towel off everone!" With that towels started falling from the ceiling, Tails mostly collapsed on the floor and started panting furiously as a towel landed directly on his head, as he removed it he noticed the other student who hadn't been hit staring at him with a perplexed look as he stood up and left. Alysia helped pull Tails to his feet, an act which he thanked her for as he then asked, still out of breath, "Please…tell me….not all classes are like that!" She shook her head as she dabbed the sweat off of herself and gave out a chuckle as she responded. "Only…crazy Fen, the mad mage of the woods, it's not always rocks…but it definitely keeps you in shape. Come on, we have illusions and then enchanting before we go back to the room." With that they departed, the other students already having warily watching the latest edition to the college.

Illusions were, confusing in Tails words to Alysia, he had read in a book once about a mythical multi tailed fox known as a Kitsune with powerful illusionary abilities, after today he was now positive he was in no way related to those beings. One of the first illusions he had been taught involved altering the perceived color of a cube he was given, Alysia's and all other students had quickly become all colors of the rainbow, from cyan to vibrant green. Tails however had somehow managed to turn into a crab and bite his finger, he had screamed rather loudly and caught the attention of all the students and teacher as he tried to pry it off his finger, the teacher whose name was Maro, had laughed before simply tapping it with a finger before it suddenly turned back into a cube. Maro who was another elf quickly cast a minor healing spell and closed the minor wound before telling Tails to "Ease off the magic, more finesse and less raw power." A very large shift from Fenrir's teaching method, nearing the end of class while the others had started other illusions Tails finally succeed in turning his grey cube, white, not a large color change, but he still considered it a victory. Moving on to the final class of the day Tails was relieved, he already felt worn out, though Alysia assured him enchanting was pretty low key, especially compared to Fenrir's class, though Tails was getting rather nervous, the other student who had not been struck by a fireball kept casting a look at him throughout illusions and into enchanting. Tails was greatly relieved by enchanting, an elderly human with a large white beard and glasses taught at a nice mellow pace and Tails quickly found himself excelling, by the end he had already managed to enchant a ring with the ability to detect foxes, it was currently only showing the one who was wearing it, but it was still a rather impressive accomplishment and Alysia congratulated him on it, stating it was beyond anything she had so far managed, as the class concluded the one who had been staring at him finally walked towards Tails and Alysia stiffened at his approach.

His voice was calm, almost cold, and Alysia was obviously perturbed by his presence, but Tails didn't realize, he was excited to have someone from the class talking to him. "It is a pleasure to meet you Tails, I noticed how fast you appear to be picking up the craft and wondered what level of study you had prior to the college?" Tails was confused at first and the other student quickly picked up on it and replied as if Tails had responded. "I see, no prior training, you are a very impressive mage. Would you be interested in some, additional magical study?" Tails was interested, and quickly responded. "That would be way past cool! Where are we going to learn?" The other student smirked and Alysia quickly butted in. "I hope you don't mind, Cyrus, but I think I'll be accompanying the two of you." The student now identified as Cyrus bowed lightly to her and responded that he would be happy to let her accompany them before returning his gaze to Tails and saying with a faint grin as he spoke, his voice now having an eerie quality and Tails felt himself shiver. "I'll meet you at the entrance to the catacombs, I'm sure Alysia can show you were it is, I'll see you around midnight Tails, I'm very excited to see to see how you deal with a different type of magic." With that he gave slight bow and walked away, it was at that point took notice of his sunken eyes, pale skin, and dark hair and eyes, then it hit him, the faint smell that hung around him, was graveyard dirt. He was interested to study further, but felt instantly nervous and now realized how nervous Cyrus actually made him, but he was determined to see it through so as he returned his room he prepared himself because he knew, it was going to be a long night.


	5. Midnight Crossroads

Sorry for taking so long, school, yadada. Anyways, its time to learn a little about Cyrus, whats his game. MuHAHAA. Anyways before we start I would like to give a thank you to everyone who reviewed the last the Hybridian, FeathersofMemory, 56th Reg. Pvt. Levinski Prower and finally a awesome anon reviewer. I don't own Sonic or Sega all rights and character belong to them. Please review.

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It smelt of bones, of dust and ages past, of bodies and death, the air reeked of it, Cyrus smiled, he truly felt at peace here, the dead were predictable, they were always there and you held no expectations for them, in this manner they could never disappoint you, never betray you, he sighed as he made room for the addition of two other living beings, they would be here soon, he hoped they would see things his way, after all he could sense from both of them a need to help others, it was a need he admired and in some ways shared, though his methods he recognized were noticeably more macabre.

Tails walked with Alysia at his side in the direction of the mausoleum which led down into the catacombs, he was going to meet with Cyrus and learn something about magic, but this was where his excitement ended, catacombs he knew were a place for the dead, and he was,(as the thumping of his heart affirmed) quite alive. Spending time in his room Alysia had discussed what she knew about Cyrus, he had entered the College the same year she had, but unlike her he had entered with a knowledge of magic that had astonished most teachers, already well versed in magic he was usually found in the library or as many people could attest, no where's at all. He would regularly not attend a class, his roommate would claim he had not checked in and several days later he would show up looking slightly frailer, and smelling of dirt and dust. Alysia was now putting what she knew together and was preparing for a worst case scenario, Cyrus fit into your stereotypical Necromancer mould, and Necromancers were a source of fear and revulsion, the practice and study of it was considered taboo, so taboo in fact that several students had been completely expelled simply for its study, and though the staff was suspicious of Cyrus they had been unable to gather any evidence against him. Alysia looked at Tails from the corner of her eye, he had slight wobble in his walk which showed how nervous he actually was, she was unsure when or how but in just a few days she had come to think of him almost as a little brother, she was dead set on protecting him from whatever Cyrus was actually planning, and had gone so far as to "borrow" a talisman from a friend, she felt prepared but wondered just what thoughts were racing through Tails mind.

Tails was practicing Fenrir's techniques and was carefully gathering energy into his twin tails which wavered behind him on the eerie walk which led to the catacombs, if he so much as saw a zombie like from the countless horror movies he had watched he was ready to take off at a speed Sonic would be impressed with. He was nervous but, excited, he felt something else from Cyrus and wondering about it when he had had some time in his room caused him to finally be able to place the emotion he had seen in Cyrus's eyes, it was sadness, from what Tails had no clue, but as he stopped in front of the now slightly ajar door of the mausoleum he was determined to find out, and hopefully learn something new about magic in the process. Tails nervously looked to Alysia who gave a nod, with that Tails swallowed and pushed the door, a loud creak the likes of which could wake the dead emanated and Tails felt a shiver run up his spine, the few beams of moonlight showed only a set of stairs inside with the occasional torch to provide light, Tails instinctively grabbed Alysia's hand and she gave his a slight squeeze to encourage him onwards, he nodded and they proceeded down the steps, their footfalls echoing into the black abyss of the catacombs. The ground beneath Tails boots was soft and kicked up dust with every step, looking around in the limited light he could see alcoves where bodies should have lay, but each one they passed was empty, barren, and unbeknownst to them had been moved by Cyrus some time ago when he had first entered these very same catacombs, Cyrus was meditating, waiting, he had arranged the torches to lead straight to him, he knew he only need wait.

The footfalls were soft on the dirt covered stones of the catacombs, the air smelt of death and Tails could feel a deep sense that he did not belong in this, a place meant for the dead, but he continued, Alysia's presence lending him the courage to place one foot in front of the other until finally, the two came to a door and pushing it open they found Cyrus, legs crossed on the dirt floor, a smile as they approached, a thin smile, though not insincere. Around him lay the bodies, perhaps twenty perhaps fifty, Tails tried not to look, the various bits of decay caused his stomach to threaten a revolt should his eyes fall on one of the corpses, and the smell, the rotting carcasses filled his sensitive nose and he felt his stomach contents trying to rise, Alysia wasn't fairing much better, her eyes fell on Cyrus, looking still with the faint smile, and a look of pain in his eyes. Cyrus spoke, the cold notes that had been there before were gone, his voice sounded calm, less restrained than it had when last they spoke. "I'm glad you came. I apologize for the shock but I saw no point hiding it, I'm certain you Alysia already had your suspicions and they were quite accurate, but I ask you before you pass judgement to hear me out." He stopped and looked to the face of Tails who was now looking at him, a nervous quiver to his lip and Alysia waiting with bated breath and prepared for an all-out magical brawl at the drop of a hat, Cyrus saw no one stopping him so with a relieved sigh he began again.

"I practice Necromancy, it is true, the manipulation of the dead, both spirits and corpses, blood and bone, that is my domain, it is where I feel most at home and where I hold the greatest power. But I am no monster, it is simply a tool, I don't want to harm anyone, I simply know that I can help more people using Necromancy than through other means and….I am tired of working alone, of hiding from everyone, there is much good that can happen from Necromancy and I want to share it, to help others, to make a difference!" He had stood up during his explanation and as he spoke a fire lit in his eyes and he had practically shouted the final part of his argument, Alysia shook her head and stared at him before she started; trying to restrain herself as best she could though the occasional note of venom still rang out. "Maybe you do want to help people, but what you're doing here is wrong, you disturb the dead when they were meant to lie in peace for eternity, you manipulate souls for your own reasons. Good or bad you are playing god, and you need to stop before you hurt someone, yourself, the college, it doesn't matter, this is the most dangerous type of magic, a single mistake and you could bring back the worst souls possible. There are other avenues to take if you really want to help people, but you need to stop!" Her final words echoed about the small space and Cyrus visibly cringed from the words, his face downcast as he gazed at the floor, then his eyes shot up, full of zeal, he wouldn't back down, he had his beliefs and he tried yet again to explain them. "I know what I'm doing is right! Imagine if wars were fought with those already dead, no one else would have to die, you would never need to know the pain of losing someone to war, It can work, I know it can! If we work together we can put an end to the taboo on Necromancy and help everyone, end war altogether, protect the living with the already dead, if they were still alive would they not wish to protect their descendants, their sons and daughters, It is what they would want! Tails, I know you understand even if Alysia does not, don't you want to help people, I do, and I know that Necromancy can help if you give it a chance!" He was breathing heavy from his speech as he calmed and began breathing again at a normal pace, Alysia was about to speak up and shout him down again, when a small voice from behind her spoke up, and said what she had least suspected him to say. "You're Right. I don't want anyone to die, and I do want to protect people, but….It seems wrong, what if they wouldn't have wanted their bodies to be used that way, I want to help people, and if Necromancy will help me protect those I care about then there should be no harm in just learning the basics right Alysia?"

She turned around to face him and she saw in his cerulean blue eyes filled with conflicting thoughts, he would decide according to whatever she said, and this made her nervous, the words sounded much more convincing coming from Tails, but she was still unsure of it, it seemed, evil, wrong and she shook her head, before finally relenting slightly and looking Cyrus straight in the eye again, much of her bluster lost. "Ok, If we were to learn about it we want no part in raising the dead, or stealing souls…but if it was just about talking to the dead and asking advice, then maybe….it would be ok." Cyrus broke into a grin, he finally had the chance for acceptance he had longed for, he nodded rapidly his stoic shell dissolving before their eyes, his dark brown eyes seemed to fill with a light of hope as he sat cross legged again and motioned for the others to come and sit next to him, though wary Alysia complied, carefully keeping Tails right next to her and Cyrus directly under her gaze as he started, a now chipper note in his voice, as he reached into one of the pockets of his cloak and pulled out two rings and held them out to both Alysia and Tails. "Take them, they help with the smell. Thank you for giving me a chance, I know it seems evil but, well I really do just wanna help and I think It really can help. So let's get started, I'll show you how to talk to the spirit of a specific body, that way if you do want to animate it you can ask if it would be all right, that's what I always do anyway."

Alysia was shocked looking at this person grinning and looking awkward, it was a completely different Cyrus then she had meant in class, he actually seemed more alive amongst the dead, was her thought, she and Tails both placed their respective rings on and found it infinitely easier to breath, Tails was actually the first to talk stating it kind of smelled like pine trees in here. Cyrus caught himself snickering as he began his lesson, and dragged a body to the middle of a small circle of candles, Tails and Alysia looked nervous again, Cyrus had picked a skeleton with no bits of skin left on it, the hollow eyes seemed to stare directly into Tails soul and he found himself shivering as Alysia placed a hand on his shoulder to steady him. The ritual was simple, a few words, some magical channelling and before long the three of them were staring at an ethereal being, the blue glow cast off from the ghost cast flickering shadows on the walls and though much more calm the two were now shaking as the apparition cast his gaze down on them. "Ah hello Cyrus, It has been some time since our last chat. And I see you brought friends, how very nice, It is a pleasure to meet you, I am Riff, former librarian to the college." His tones were cold and yet held no malice, they spoke of a warmth of a caring soul and soon Tails found himself throwing question after question at Riff and the conversation lasted into the early hours of the morning, Alysia eventually joining in and found herself laughing at some of the old ghosts stories, Cyrus finally felt a measure of peace in the company of the living and allowed himself to watch the two a mile on his face.


	6. Nightmares

Ahem. Sorry for you know not updating for about six months...I'm really sorry (begging face) Anyways I suddenly decided to come back and try to finish this. Unfinshed fictions are just feel bad points. So due to the break, my style might have changed a little but I hope you sill enjoy this. I decided to keep plot points light for my return so I squeezed a few ridiculous cameos from characters into the story. Don't worry this isn't going to become the crossover from hell story where I try to cram every character in the known universe into it. Well what can I say, I'm back and I really hope you enjoy this and read and review. Also thank you to anybody who reviewed this all those months ago, you were awesome then and your awesome now.

I don't own anything referenced in this chapter and have no affiliation wih Sega or any of their character. Plz enjoy. :)

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How long had it been? A year, a millennium, the entirety of time itself? He wasn't sure, he just paced in the infinite blackness that had so long been his cage. Even now he let out the demented grin as he felt molecule by molecule the prison slowly fade away, it would break soon. Freedom would be sweet, so many possibilities, and so many souls to devour. He licked his lips as he continued his pacing, the power, the power to become a god was almost his and once he was free he would succeed this time, he would burn that college and petty arch mage who had stood against him. It would be reduced to ash and at the end of it only he would remain. A god for the rest of time itself, he waited, the time drawing ever nearer.

/

The night had passed and Tails and Alysia had returned to their dorm just as the sun had risen fully above the horizon. It painted the sky a royal purple that caused the both of them to stop and stare at its wonder. Once in the dorm the two quickly showered and removed the rings which Cyrus had given to them, the smell of death wasn't one either wanted to carry around. Tails examined his watch after he had finished and thought back to everything that had taken place that night. In particular one thing caught his ear and made him uneasy as he recalled it.

/

"So Riff what was College like back when you were librarian?" Tails had questioned. A smile crossed the ghosts face as he recalled the ancient memories before responding.

"I remember the teachers, Zarell the old coot who taught how to control the weather. He would frequent my library, always hungry for another book and that next elusive revelation about his work. A charming fellow, good sense of humour to I remember, which is odd for a mage. There were many students to; some of them went on to such great things. Sadly none are left now." Tails quirked an eyebrow and so did Alysia but it was Cyrus that responded.

"Riff keeps telling me about something that happened; in fact none of the ghosts are sure exactly what went on. Everyone just sort of disappeared, teachers, students everyone, except the Arch Mage of course. Weird thing is all of their memories on the event are, hazy, they know something happened but no one's sure what." The group paused in silence before Riff regained the mood by telling a story on a student who had managed to turn his skin pink. Laughs started again and the conversation moved on.

/

Tails heard the water stop running and Alysia came out a minute or two later. She paused with a look at Tails who seemed to be deep in thought about something. She took a seat next to him and asked.

"What's bugging you? Is it about Cyrus or something?" Tails looked up and gave her that goofy grin which she copied before he replied.

"It's just me wondering about what Riff said with all the students and teachers having disappeared. Just has me curious is all. But off of that, what did you think about Cyrus?" Alysia thought about it, in fact she had been even before she walked into those catacombs. He had always been so closed off and sad, before last night she had never paid him any mind aside occasional gossip floating around. Now she knew that he was a necromancer and every law abiding bone was saying to turn him in now. But she wouldn't, he needed guidance and help, and being kicked out of the college would only make things worse for him. She looked back at Tails with those bright inquisitive eyes and responded with her uncertainty.

"I'm not sure. He seems good, but I think he might be in over his head. Didn't seem violent or anything so that's pretty good." Tails just nodded his head at the assessment. He checked his watch again and realized he still had an hour and a half before classes started. He could sleep, but there was something else he had in mind for the time being. He turned about to head into his room when he stopped and turned back towards Alysia.

"Oh, I didn't thank you for coming with me last night. It would have been, pretty scary going by myself so thank you!" Tails finished off cheerfully as he headed into his room. He took a seat at the desk that belonged to him and pulled a blank sheet of paper and pen out. He'd yet to reply to Sonic's letter and he knew the hedgehog would be getting nervous if he didn't reply soon.

/

Tails and Alysia walked into Fenrir's class who gave them both a wide wolfish grin that had Tails nervous again. Alysia was about to take a seat when she noticed Cyrus on the other side of the room and moved to take a seat next to him. Tails was still nervously looking right at Fenrir who had yet to stop giving him the grin and was only broken out of it by Cyrus and Alysia whistling and waving him over. Once he was seated Fenrir started.

"Today I thought we might do something a little low key. Now I originally thought to have you all write a paper explaining the effects that alteration based magic can have on the body." Tails sighed in relief at the statement, writing a nice relaxing paper would be perfect after having spent the entire night awake with Cyrus and Alysia. Then Fenrir continued and Tails felt his gut drop.

But then I thought, screw that, writings boring, you want labour and blood sweat and tears! So I thought of a perfect little excursion which I managed to get the Arch-Mages permission for. Follow me and get ready." Fenrir stood and started walking straight out of the classroom and onto the college grounds. Tails whispered over to Alysia and Cyrus.

"What's going on? Does he do this normally?" Both just shook their heads and had on the same puzzled expression most of the class had. Though their looks of confusion were soon replaced with nervousness as they started approaching the large tower on the Eastern grounds. The one every student had received warnings about when first entering the college. The could hear shouting and see brilliant flashes of light coming from the windows and finally Fenrir turned about and faced the class with a terrible grin, standing just in front of the door. His voice had an almost excited quality in it, which for most students was an immediate red flag about what was about to happen.

"This is going to be a unique training opportunity. All of you know basic defensive spells, except for Tails so he'll just need to make do. In here you fight memories, some were made by students that are long gone and some might just be things that you remember from your nightmares. Occasionally we even get bleed through from other dimensions so projections of powerful individuals will show up now and again. Don't worry about dying; I had mages engage the "safeties" as they like to call it. You'll feel the hits on a mental level but permanent damage is next to impossible. If you wish to not participate that is a valid option. Instead you'll practice from last class and balance a boulder on your back six times the size of the one from yesterday. If you drop it, it will double in weight and if I catch one of you slacking…..well, who's up for some new training opportunities!" Most students looked terrified, a few had the look in their eyes that screamed competition. Alysia whisper over in Tails ear.

"Well, what do you want to do?" Tails thought about it, whatever was in there could be something straight from his nightmare. A brief image of Robotnik without a shirt came to mind and Tails felt his stomach retch and a horrible chill go down his spine. As long as it wasn't that he couldn't see anything being much worse so he stepped forwards and Cyrus and Alysia quickly followed his lead.

Tails felt more and more nervous and started regretting his decision when Cyrus and Alysia were lead off individually, soon the entirety of the group had been lead somewhere and only Tails was left nervously waiting whatever thing he fought with. He was just grateful it couldn't actually hurt him. Finally Fenrir came up and gave Tails a thoughtful once over before leading him to a medium sized room covered in scorch marks. Fenrir spoke up.

"Once I start this only way it stops is for one of you to be knocked out. It won't do any lasting damage mind you but it won't exactly be painless, you still sure." Tails thought of every time he'd seen Sonic act brave so he quickly nodded his head and got into a fighting stance. Finally Fenrir spoke before muttering words for a summoning.

"Well according to this list you're going to fight someone's memory of something called, Sylar. Good luck." With that Fenrir said some quick words and then left the room lighted only by a single chandelier hanging in the centre. Suddenly the air shimmered and distorted until a shape took place. It was human, male, and thin with a dark coat and oddly intimidating eyebrows. Tails didn't think he looked that dangerous. Suddenly his eyes focused directly on Tails and he felt himself shrink back, the look in his eyes was something terrible, dark and Tails then realized that this person was somebody's nightmare. Tails focused all his magic into his tails and revved them up gathering speed while trying to keep himself in place before taking off and attacking. Sylar just moved a hand and next thing Tails knew he was pinned to wall by some invisible force struggling to get out. Tails just whimpered as he tried to poor as much strength into his body as he could. Suddenly the man levelled a single finger at his head and to Tails it felt like ice water was in his veins. He heard a horrible sawing noise and then started screaming and quickly passed out.

Tails sputtered out a mouth full of water and bolted upright to see Fenrir holding a bucket and Alysia and Cyrus looking concerned. Fenrir grinned as he pulled Tails to his feet and talked aloud.

"Nice to see you were ready to fight without fear, kinda sad that not one of my students managed to beat a shade. Still that's why there used for the teachers to train usually." Alysia and Tails expressions were jaws almost on the floor while Cyrus looked confused before he asked.

"So if these are for training teachers and all that why would you have us low level students even try if it was obvious we were going to lose?" Fenrir chuckled in response before he responded.

"It's so you get to know what a true worst case scenario is, where you're fighting someone who is on such a higher level than you that you have no conceivable chance of ever winning. Plus if the student of a low level teacher ever manages to get a student to beat a shade we receive a bonus. I was kinda hoping to get it but awww well. Now hurry up and get to your next classes. The trio hurried along and discussed jus what they had fought in their respective rooms. Alysia went first.

"I had to fight some skeleton mage with glowing red eyes who kept shouting he was the King of Worms. He blinded me in thirty seconds then I think set me on fire. Not fun. What about you?" She questioned Cyrus who just had a brief shiver run up his spine before he responded.

"It was a rabbit. It looked like a rabbit so I sort of went to get close to it and then it just jumped and bit my throat. Killer rabbit. Horrible." Cyrus gave a slight shiver before they both looked at Tails. Noticing the looks he responded.

"Some creepy human called Sylar who threw me against the wall and then I think sawed my head open. I don't think I want to go back there any time soon." Everyone was in agreement of that, so they headed off to their next class, illusions, Tails hoped no insanity was waiting for him there.


	7. Shatter

This story is alive! I saw the review by Tails the Fox and must say thank you. Though I had a tiny bit of trouble reading it which I deserved because the grammar from my previous chapter was poor. Luckily this chapter has a wee bit better grammar. Also I noticed a knew favorite, hello out there I know your reading and would love a review. From anyone. Come on pretty please! Anyway enough of my yapping, I don't own Sonic or Sega all copyrights belong to them.

* * *

Illusions class had come and gone and Tails was quite relieved when it had finally left. This time some of the class had started trying to transform their appearances. Tails not wanting to be left out gave his best attempt and managed to alter his fur color, unfortunately the color had been a pink so bright Amy would have been blinded. He saw Alysia snickering and had thought he saw a slight grin and suppressed chuckle run across Cyrus's face. Maro had said it was actually an impressive improvement since yesterday so Tails left the room feeling a slight bit of pride.

He was currently making way through a hall towards enchanting when he felt…something, he couldn't describe it other than a strong feeling of Déjà vu. He shook his head to clear the feeling as he heard a quick slap against that marble tiles that signaled someone running towards him. He turned and waved as he spotted Alysia who smiled in return.

"Hey Tails. You left Illusions so quick I had to jog to catch up. Something bugging you?" Tails shook his head with a smile on his face as he responded.

"Nah, I'm just excited to get to Enchanting, it's probably my best class. Sorry about running past you. Walk the rest of the way with me?" Alysia nodded and then kept a nice walking pace next to Tails occasionally giving him sideways glances. In all honesty she had been concerned that his first experience with Necromancy had shaken him. But looking at him he had the same bright eyes, though they were drooping with his lack of a nights rest. She was pleased to find her fears had been unfounded.

Tails walked into the room and felt a wave of excitement hit him, he wasn't sure why but Enchanting seemed almost familiar. He attributed it to the similarities between the engineering and building he had loved so much back on Mobius. A slight chill ran up his back at the thought of his plane just sitting in his garage gathering dust. Putting the thought hastily behind him he settled down on a bench right between Cyrus and Alysia and got to work.

/

He licked his lips and felt his prison collapsing faster and faster. The infinite blackness now showed a single pinprick of light in the all consuming darkness. The light fell directly on to one of his eyes and showed the myriad of colors that made up the iris. Blood red, cobalt blue, bright yellow and dark green swirled about in constant motion. A wicked thought crossed his mind, perhaps he wouldn't need to wait until the prison fully collapsed until he escaped. It had been so long since he had last tried, but invigorated by the light he figured it would cost him little. He gathered his power, held his breath and then released it with all the force he could muster.

/

Tails was staring with pride at his latest creation. Even the teacher had approached and adjusted the glasses on his wrinkled forehead as he showed signs of how impressed he was. It was an amulet this time that Tails hoped would absorb the background energies of the college and let him be a little stronger in his other classes. He held it up to the light shining through one of the classes stained windows which depicted an ancient mage when he noticed something. The window seemed to be rattling, in fact all of them were. Tails glanced down and the central jewel in his amulet had started vibrating. He turned about to ask the teacher what was going on when it happened. A horrible cracking sound filled the air and Tails stared in horror as his amulet's jewel cracked before his eyes. Then he felt the force hit him like a black wave and in that same instant every window exploded into a hail of razored shards. Yelps and screams filled the air as people took cover behind or under whatever they could while some were blown straight off their feet. Tails cringed and covered his head and neck waiting for a rain of glass to hit him.

He waited for the familiar impact, after so many times of fighting Robotnik and his minions he knew what it felt like to have glass rain down towards you. Nothing came so he peeked out and saw the aged Enchanting teacher had frozen all the shards in mid flight and was now pushing them out the window to fall outside of the classroom. The students started to dust themselves off and Tails quickly looked around in fright before sighting Alysia und a desk and ran up to her and took her hand before giving a pull which brought her to her feet.

"Are you alright? Did any get you?" Tails asked concerned, she just shook her head before spotting Cyrus and her heart nearly stopped. He had his back to the far wall and looked like he had been knocked off his feet. He cupped his shoulder a look of obvious distress on him as a slight line of red ran from between his fingers. Tails spotted what had frozen Alysia to the spot and quickly ran up to him. Tails was worried for his friend but a quick look told him he wasn't in serious danger. The aged teacher then came over and held his hands over the wound as his skin quickly put itself back together and glass embedded fell to the floor. Alysia and Tails helped him to his feet as a question that was in most everyone's thoughts was said aloud.

"What in the hell was that!? Are we under attack or something?" Tails wasn't sure who had said it but the concern was plain to see on every students face that this was what they were worried about. The teacher just shook his head before responding, his voice commanding authority that halted the panicked whispers which raced about the room.

"No we are most certainly not under attack. That was no spell, just a collection of magical power that must have somehow coalesced on college grounds. Though I admit it was unusually powerful but I assure you we are in no danger here. I will protect each of you from harm. Now if any of you have suffered any harm come up here and I'll heal it quickly. If you were not harmed, class is over in light of the circumstances so you may return to your rooms." He started healing scrapes and cuts people had gotten as Tails picked up what remained of his amulet. It looked scorched with part having partially melted and the central gem shattered into near dust. He placed it into his bag before heading to his room with Alysia and Cyrus.

Cyrus took a seat on Tails bed as the three just looked at one another still a little shocked over what happened. It was Tails who first spoke.

"So this type of thing doesn't happen too often right?" Tails asked only half jokingly. Both just shook their heads. Cyrus spoke up now, clearly far more awake than he had been that day.

"I have no idea what could have caused it. I don't think I believe Alistair's explanation, or at least I don't think it's the full story. Something caused that and it had to be pretty strong. I'm going to go question some spirits and see if any of them have seen anything like this before. But before I go I thought of something you might be interested in so I grabbed it from my room before I went to class, here." Tails took the small book in one hand; it was covered in black leather and seemed to hold the same scent as Cyrus, graveyard dirt.

"Uhhm thanks…what is it?" Tails asked still the slightest bit nervous for Cyrus. Cyrus grabbed it and opened it revealing a hand written title on the first page.

"Necromantic Grimoire and research by Cyrus" Tails couldn't read the last name that had been written after Cyrus as it had been scratched out. Tails nodded and thanked Cyrus saying he would read over it and tell him what he thought. Cyrus turned to leave but paused just inside the doorway before turning around and addressing the both of them.

"See you tomorrow hopefully and, yah know be careful." With that Cyrus departed and left Alysia and Tails starring at the small black book. Tails leafed over to the first entry and then a question quickly formed in his mind.

"Alysia how long has Cyrus been at the college?" Tails questioned, Alysia quirked an eyebrow before replying.

"He joined the same time I did so about 6 months ago I would say. Why?" Tails turned the book over and showed her the first date as he spoke.

"The first date is from three years before he entered the college. He's been studying Necromancy since before he even came to the college. No wonder you said he was so good from day one." Alysia nodded as Tails closed the book not yet ready to start into it as first he had a pressing matter. He still hadn't written Sonic back yet and if he knew Sonic he might very well be panicking.

Tails stared down at the page that he had written and hoped it would calm Sonic down; he looked over at the photo of the two of them and felt a twinge of homesickness. He placed the message in the box and left to go talk a little with Alysia before finally getting some much needed sleep.

/

Sonic was sprinting through station square completely intent on keeping his mind off of Tails. He'd been gone two days and still hadn't written back. He was probably distracted, but so distracted to forget about his old big bro. The thought worried him which was precisely why he was currently trying not to think about and instead had gone on to track down and send to prison as many criminals he could get his hands on. The only real challenge he'd encountered was Nack who had managed to land a half decent kick but was now currently sitting in a prison cell. The sun was heading down so he decided to head back to his place to see it Tails had finally sent him a message.

He flicked on the light switch and stared at the small box and crossed his fingers. He finally gathered his hope and flipped the lid and an instant smile went out across his features. He pulled the letter out and took a seat on his couch to see just how his best bud was doing. As he read he imagined Tails light voice right next to him like it had been only two days ago.

"Dear Sonic

What's up bro, I got your first letter and thanks! I miss you to but I can't wait for you to get here so I can show you some cool stuff. I have a roommate who's really nice. Her names Alysia and she says she's called an elf! Crazy right, but I also met someone named Cyrus. He's nice but needs some help so I'm doing the best that I can. The classes are way past cool, I have Alteration which is all about making you enhance your own abilities. The teacher might even be able to make you sweat hahha. I'm pretty bad at illusions but I think I'm getting better slowly. Last I have enchanting which I'm already excelling at which is my favorite class. How's Mobius holding up? Make sure you say hi to Amy and Knuckles if you see them. Love yah bro and can't wait to see you and show what I've learned.

Love your little bro."

Sonic smiled and thought about what he would write back as he folded the letter neatly and placed it on his coffee table for later readings. He knew he needed something to take his mind off of Tails not being here and at the rate he was going he would run out of criminals sooner rather than later. For the first time Sonic half hoped Robotnik would attack so he had something to do. Knowing it would happen eventually he decided to do something he had never before done. Accept the standing invitation for a date from Amy, he might as well as he would just spend time thinking about Tails and he didn't want to respond to quick and seem like all he was doing was waiting. He took off to invite Amy to the movies.

/

He was bent over huffing and breathing hoarsely from inside his prison. His "stunt" had taken more out of him than he had thought it would. He hadn't cracked the blackness but he felt as the tiniest fraction of his power had escaped the pinprick in his world of darkness. He grinned knowing some of it had hit the college, let it serve them as a warning for when I am finally free he thought. He crossed his legs and decided to meditate and regain his strength until his moment finally came, and soon enough it would be here. The wicked grin ran across his features as he imagined the power that would soon be his.


End file.
